


Hero Among Heroes

by toosolidcuuj



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Percy Jackson is a God, Sibling Bonding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-19
Updated: 2018-06-11
Packaged: 2018-12-04 00:10:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11543334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toosolidcuuj/pseuds/toosolidcuuj
Summary: After the Battle of Manhattan, Percy takes the gods up on their offer of immortality and tries to make changes from the inside. But as the giants rise and Gaea starts to awaken, he quickly finds himself at odds with one of the most ancient of divine laws.





	1. Chapter 1

“Do you think Percy would do some sparring with me over the school year?” asked Paul as he cut green peppers. “It could keep us both in good shape.”

Sally smiled over the chicken she was cooking. Paul had really gotten into the monster fighting spirit during all the chaos that had been going on in Manhattan. Now that he fully believed in Percy’s world of gods and monsters, he accepted it with gusto - just as she thought he would. He’d been rambling excitedly all the way home from the Empire State Building, speculating on the modern looks of all the gods, Sally supplying what she knew about them every now and then. When they’d started preparing enchiladas, the subject had changed only tangentially.

“Percy’s not allowed to use weapons in the apartment,” said Sally. “Except during emergencies.”

“Oh of course we’d have to find a space,” said Paul. “I’ve been thinking it might be worth getting a gym membership.”

Sally wasn’t sure whether most gyms had policies against bringing three-foot bronze swords inside, but she merely said, “He won’t be able to stay away from the pool.”

“Well, swimming’s good exercise, too.” Paul finished with the peppers and started on mushrooms. “Even if it doesn’t become a regular thing with him, it would be fun for you and me to go together.”

Sally didn’t mean to sound half-hearted when she said, “Yeah, it would.”

“Are you okay?” asked Paul. “You’ve been a little disengaged ever since we left the Empire State building. Percy’s all right - I thought you would be relieved.”

“I was - I am,” said Sally. “But when he came down from the six hundredth floor, there was . . . something _different_ about him. But at the same time, it was kind of familiar - I don’t know how to describe it. I just have this - this sense of foreboding, like I might still lose him, somehow.” She turned off the stovetop. “I know it doesn’t make much sense.”

“Well, you know more about this stuff than I do,” said Paul. “Have you ever picked up on anything like this before?”

Sally thought back. She’d been afraid of losing Percy before - to being a year-round camper, to death - but when he’d looked off before, she could guess what was wrong. Now he was acting off for a reason she couldn’t pin down. And it wasn’t just in how he was acting - there was something different about how he looked, how he presented himself, the . . . _energy_ surrounding him. Even when he’d learned his identity as a demigod, the change hadn’t looked like this. “No,” Sally told Paul. “Nothing quite like this.”

“Well,” said Paul, “I guess we’ll have to ask him when he gets here.”

They had no idea when exactly that would be - knowing Percy, it could be a week - but they set a place for him at the table once their dinner was ready to eat. As Sally was cutting into the enchiladas, the front door opened.

It was Percy. Sally left her spatula in the dish and got up to hug him. He hugged her back tightly, even moreso than usual. It made her think she might be right, and Percy was going to say goodbye. She blinked back tears as they broke the hug.

“I love you, Mom,” said Percy. He seemed to notice she was emotional, and looked like he was about to say something else, but then seemed to decide against it. Instead he said, “Those enchiladas smell really good.”

Sally laughed and they sat down to dinner. Percy ate more slowly than usual, savoring each bite as though he were eating his mother’s enchiladas for the first time.

“So what happened with Rachel?” asked Sally, recalling what Nico had said about her taking a pegasus to Long Island. “Did she make it to camp?”

“Turns out, Chiron invited her there,” said Percy, “so she got in without a problem. She’s the Oracle now.” He went on to explain how the Oracle of Delphi had been living in a corpse due to a curse of Hades, but the curse had recently lifted, so Rachel could now host the Oracle.

“Had no one tried before Rachel?” asked Paul.

“One woman did,” Percy told him. “It went really badly.” Percy moved on to the prophecy Rachel had spoken after the Oracle’s spirit had taken hold. “We have no idea when it will come to pass, though.”

Sally was a little relieved. “So it might not be about you. It might not even happen in your lifetime.”

Percy’s gaze shifted, and Sally could tell he was sitting on some huge information. She was about to prod him when he took a breath and said, “Actually, I’m pretty sure I will live to see this prophecy come to pass.”

Sally asked, “How do you know that?”

“Zeus offered me immortality,” said Percy, “because of everything I did to save Olympus. I’m a god now.”

Paul’s jaw dropped. Sally could feel herself tearing up again. Several emotions whirled through her - astonishment, vindication, anguish, but most prominently, pride in her son. “Oh Percy,” she said, “you’ve done it. Become the greatest of heroes. I always knew you would.” She took his hand, and Percy put his other hand on top of hers.

“I can’t live here anymore,” he told her, “but I’ll visit, I promise. As often as I can.”

“So I guess you won’t be going back to school in the fall?” asked Paul.

“Does Goode offer concurrent godhood enrollment?”

When they had finished laughing, Sally asked, “Are you going to live on Olympus now?”

“Maybe sometimes,” said Percy. “But my job now is going to be as Poseidon’s attendant. Number one on his to-do list is rebuilding his underwater kingdom, and I’m going to help with that. Or if I’m being honest, have Annabeth help me help with that.” As he said the words, he looked slightly uncomfortable.

“What does she think about you becoming immortal?” asked Sally.

“She’s  . . . not completely happy about it,” said Percy. “But I told her I’d spend time with her on Olympus while she’s redesigning it, I’m not going to stop hanging out with her, but it’s not like I’m only gonna go to her when I need help, I want to . . .” He sighed. “I know I let her down when I said yes to this. If it were the other way around, I'd probably feel the same way.”

“You and Annabeth have worked through some pretty tough problems before,” said Sally. “You two have a strong bond. You becoming immortal might change some things, but you two will always be close.”

Percy nodded. “I hope so. So does she.” After a moment he continued, “I didn't take this gig just because immortality sounds cool. The gods . . . they need to do better by their kids. A lot of demigods joined up with Kronos because they felt ignored by their parents. I want to be a voice for demigods among the Olympians. I want to do what I can to help.”

“Changing the system from the inside,” said Paul.

“Yeah. I told Chiron I’m sponsoring new cabins at camp - one for _every_ god, so the minor gods and their kids don’t get left out. No more unclaimed kids crammed into Cabin Eleven. I got the names of some of their unclaimed kids, so I can make sure they make it to camp. And I’m encouraging them to claim them before they’re thirteen -”

“Wait,” said Paul. “You’ve started on all of this in the, what, three hours since you became a god?”

“Well, I’m kind of doing it all at once,” said Percy.  “One aspect of me is still celebrating on Olympus. Another is at Camp Half-Blood planning with Annabeth and Chiron. And then I’m also here.”

Sally had no idea what to say to that. Judging by the look on Paul’s face, neither did he.

Percy laughed nervously. “It’s not like I can keep all my divine essence in the same place. Then I would take my true form and that’s deadly for mortals to look at.”

This information left Sally and Paul further dumbfounded.

“. . . anyway, maybe that’s another reason why so many demigods have ADHD. Our godly side always wants to be doing a ton of things at once.”

Sally found it in her to laugh at this. “Oh, Percy. You never stop surprising me, even after all these years.”

Percy said, “Now _that_ surprises _me_. I didn’t think I’d ever gotten anything by you. You literally see everything.”

Sally chuckled. “Good to know you believe that. _Somebody_ should be able to put the fear of god in you when you need it.” Then Sally realized what she’d just said.

“Who do you answer to now?” asked Paul. “Zeus, I guess?”

“And my dad,” answered Percy. “And the arbitrary laws that govern immortals. And there are some _weird_ ones, that’s for sure. Like apparently I’m supposed to avoid Brooklyn now? Like I said, weird.”

“What happens if you break these weird rules?” Sally asked.

“Um . . . you know what, I'm not sure. I'll have to ask.”

“Make sure you do,” Sally said sternly. She knew her boy could be a rulebreaker, which was only a problem when he didn't know how far was too far. Poseidon himself had once told her that rulebreakers had to know the rules extra well, so they knew what they could get away with. She didn't want Percy getting himself in some kind of cosmic trouble just because he didn't understand the consequences of crossing some obscure line.

“Okay, Mom,” said Percy.

The conversation drifted away from godhood after that. They spent the rest of the night making blue cookies and playing games, knowing this would be their last night to spend as a regular family for a long time.

* * *

The most essential parts of Poseidon’s palace had already been rebuilt using magic. It was only certain areas, like the game room, that Poseidon wanted to redesign. The bedrooms had already been restored to pristine conditions, and Percy was shown to one bigger than he’d ever had before, complete with walk-in closet and master bathroom.

But as amazing as his room was, Percy was itching to see the rest of the place. He swam through the ornate pearl-lit halls until he noticed a delicious smell. It seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t put his finger on exactly what it was. He’d probably be able to recognize it on land, but underwater it was a complete mystery.

He wasn’t surprised when his nose led him into the kitchen. Well, one of them, anyway. He’d seen the blueprints for the palace and had learned it had five kitchens, all of which went into overdrive whenever Poseidon hosted a feast. What did surprise Percy was who was cooking in this kitchen.

Amphitrite was taking cookies off a cookie sheet and putting them on a cooling rack. Percy wasn’t sure why they needed to cool, seeing as the water should have done that as soon as they came out of the oven. He wondered if the salt water would make them taste different. The water had certainly kept him from recognizing their smell.

But Amphitrite wasn’t the only person in the kitchen. Her son Triton was speaking to her. “I’ll probably be back the day after tomorrow, if the camp is in good condition,” he was saying. “If it’s not, you should hear from me by the same date.”

Amphitrite nodded. “Give Aphros and Bythos my greetings.” Then she noticed Percy. “Oh, hello, Percy! You’re just who I wanted to see.”

“I am?” asked Percy.

“Of course,” she said warmly. “Come, sit down, have a cookie.”

Amphitrite looked different from the last time Percy had seen her, though she was still very beautiful. She had replaced her armor with a simple white dress, and had accessorized with a little crown of polished red crab claws. Percy had to remind himself not to stare at her little crab claw horns. They were hardly the weirdest thing he’d ever seen.

Triton had stiffened when he saw Percy, and he said, “I should leave,” with the same stiffness. “Goodbye, Mother. Perseus.”

He swam around the corner and was gone.

“Don’t mind him,” said Amphitrite. “Triton’s just worried about how Camp _______ survived the war.”

Percy was pretty sure Triton had something against him that had nothing to do with this camp, but he didn’t mention it. In any case, the camp’s name was easily distracting Percy. He had understood the series of sonar pings and hisses Amphitrite had made, though he had no idea how he’d go about translating them into English. “Camp _______? Is that like Camp Half-Blood, but underwater?” It sounded really cool.

Amphitrite seemed amused by the idea. “I suppose that’s a fair way to describe it. It’s even run by your teacher Chiron’s brethren, the ichthyocentaurs Aphros and Bythos.”

“ _Wow_ ,” Percy said. “Mind. _Blown._ I didn’t even know there were underwater centaurs, let alone that they were Chiron’s _brothers._ When can I go check this camp out?”

“Oooh, sorry,” said Amphitrite. “I’m afraid Triton was the first and last of Poseidon’s children to train there. He has a good rapport with Aphros and Bythos, but the ichthyocentaurs have made a point of avoiding Poseidon’s oversight. They’re very . . . _adamant_. . . about their autonomy.”

“Oh,” said Percy, trying not to seem too disappointed. “Okay.”

“Listen,” said Amphitrite, “the reason I wanted to talk to you - I want to apologize for being curt to you the last time we met.”

“That’s okay,” said Percy. “I wasn’t really expecting anything else.”

“But I usually give Poseidon’s demigod children a much warmer welcome!” she said earnestly. “Theseus and I got along famously, after all. But I’m afraid things were looking grim during the battle with Oceanus. I wasn’t in a very welcoming mood, and I’m sorry for that.”

“You’re totally forgiven,” said Percy. “And I’m sorry too. I was being kind of rude about how the war was affecting Dad.”

“It was hard on all of us,” said Amphitrite. “I can see how it would have been distressing to you.”

Their eyes met, and Percy knew he and Amphitrite had an understanding. “Anyway,” she said, “you’re also ‘totally forgiven.’”

He laughed, and she pushed a plate of cookies at him. “You really have to try one.”

Percy took a bite, and loved it. He wasn't sure how, but it was warm and had the same crunchy-but-gooey-inside texture he liked best. Being underwater hadn't affected it at all. “Holy cow,” he said. “Do you and my mom use the same recipe? These are amazing.” Then he realized he’d misspoken. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have brought her up.”

“Oh, no, it’s fine,” said Amphitrite, and it sounded like she meant it. “Poseidon and I have an understanding about his affairs. Your mother’s a good woman, Percy Jackson. She was good for Poseidon - it was about time he got dumped by a mortal woman.”

Percy almost forgot to swallow his cookie before he spoke. “What? _She_ broke up with _him_?”

Amphitrite raised an eyebrow. “She never told you why she left him?”

“Well . . . before I knew the truth, she told me he was lost at sea. And after I found out who he really was, I never thought to ask.”

“Hmm,” said Amphitrite. “Well, I don’t know all the details, but he did talk to me about having her live underwater, in another palace he’d build for her.”

“She told him she needed to live life on her own terms,” said Percy. “She couldn't have him solve all her problems.”

“So she _did_ tell you!”

“She said that's what she told him once. She didn't say it was a breakup line!”

Amphitrite laughed, and Percy found himself joining in.

“Yes,” Amphitrite said when they were done, “she's quite remarkable. If Poseidon had to break his oath, I'm glad it was with her. Nothing like that nasty business Zeus and Hera had with Beryl Grace.”

“Beryl Grace?” asked Percy. “You mean _Thalia’s_ mom? Did Hera do something to her?” Thalia had told him her mom had died from being drunk behind the wheel. But had Hera actually caused it?

“Oh,” said Amphitrite. “Yes, I suppose the two of you would be comrades. Um . . .” She took a moment to consider Percy. “Would you be able to keep a secret from all your demigod friends, especially Thalia?”

Oh, Olympus. What kind of drama had Thalia’s mom gotten into? “What kind of secret?” Percy asked.

“The kind that could start a war if not kept,” she told him. “Would you swear on the River Styx not to tell?”

“I . . . I could.” Percy wasn’t sure if he wanted to get into this. But now that Amphitrite had mentioned it, Percy was never going to be able to leave it alone. He had to find out what this secret was.

Amphitrite looked at him expectantly.

“Okay, okay,” said Percy. “I swear on the River Styx not to reveal this secret you're about to tell me to any of my demigod friends.”

“Especially Thalia.”

“Especially Thalia.”

Percy didn’t say so to Amphitrite, but the wording of this oath did leave him a couple of loopholes. He could tell the secret to his friend who wasn’t a demigod, or to a demigod who wasn’t his friend. It reassured him, in case this secret ever needed to be told.

“Okay,” said Amphitrite. “The Sky God had two separate affairs with Beryl Grace. One as Zeus, and one as Jupiter.”

“Aren’t they the same person?” asked Percy.

“No,” said Amphitrite. “Jupiter is more . . . responsible, and more warlike, well, all of our Roman counterparts are more warlike, but -”

“Whoa, hold up,” said Percy. “What do you mean, _all_ our Roman counterparts?”

“We gods all have a Roman aspect. They worshipped us so long, the way they thought of us affected our personalities.”

“So you’re telling me that you - that Dad, that every god I’ve ever met - have this second personality I’ve never heard of? You’re kidding, right?”

“I wouldn’t joke about this.”

Percy mulled it over. “So if all the gods have Roman personalities, then why don’t I have one?”

“Because the Romans never worshipped you. They don’t even know you.”

“This is crazy,” said Percy. “All the gods really have multiple personality disorder or whatever?”

Amphitrite’s expression darkened. “I wouldn’t speak so lightly about this, or about mental disorders, Percy. You don’t understand . . .” Her form flickered, and a gold chain mail shirt appeared over her white dress. Her crown grew a crab carapace, to cover her head. Her expression became more lined and hardened.

“So you think I don’t exist, do you?” she said.

“Uh . . . Amphitrite?” Percy asked, off guard.

“No, I’m Salacia, you fool! Did you really think I could stand by while you insulted my very existence?”

So this was Amphitrite’s Roman form. Percy remembered how angry Mr. D had been when Percy had doubted his existence, when Percy was just learning he was a demigod. He’d even threatened to incinerate him. But Percy wasn’t a mortal twelve-year-old anymore. He was a god.

“I’m not a fool,” said Percy. “Even you have to admit this is weird.”

Salacia laughed. “You should be used to weird things by now, Perseus Jackson.”

Percy shrugged. “Fine. Whatever. You exist. Could you bring back Amphitrite now? We were kind of having a conversation before you interrupted.”

“Gladly,” Salacia said with a sneer. “I’ll leave her the onerous burden of talking to you any day.”

Her form flickered again, and Amphitrite was back.

“Well she was . . . salty,” Percy said.

Amphitrite grimaced. “Please don’t make any more salt puns. She hates them.”

“Sorry,” said Percy, not entirely sincerely. He really didn’t care what Salacia thought of him, so long as he didn’t have to deal with her.

“Now where were we?” asked Amphitrite. “Oh yes. Zeus fathered one child on Beryl Grace, and Jupiter fathered another.”

Percy’s mouth fell open. “Thalia has a sibling?”

“Yes, a brother. He was named Jason, at Juno’s insistence. You see, she was quite insulted at her husband having two children with the same mortal woman. So she demanded the boy be given to her as recompense. When the child was two years old, his mother took him to the place where Roman demigods begin their journey - the Wolf House.”

“The Wolf House,” Percy repeated. “I’ve never heard of it.”

“That’s because you were a Greek demigod, not a Roman.”

“So . . . Romans get trained differently?”

“Yes. They live with Lupa, the wolf goddess who raised Romulus and Remus, and her pack, for a time. When Lupa believes they are ready, she sends them to Camp Jupiter.”

Percy stood up. “Camp _Jupiter_ ? You’re telling me there’s _two_ hero training camps that I never heard of until today?”

“Yes,” said Amphitrite. “And the Greek and Roman camps must never know of one another’s existence. Before they were hidden from one another, they warred against each other constantly. So many civil wars in history happened because of them. That’s why you must keep this a secret from your demigod friends.”

“Does . . . does Thalia know she has a brother?”

“Yes, she knew him, but she has no idea what happened to him after their mother gave him up. She was told to believe he was dead.”

Percy felt his stomach flip. “That’s even worse than if she never knew he existed.”

“Yes, but you mustn’t tell her. She can never know her brother is Roman, or that he lives at Camp Jupiter. It would not end well.”

Percy fell back into his chair. He tried to imagine how it would be to have your two-year-old brother disappear and to never find out what had happened to him. And then to have your friend know but never bother to tell you . . .

“Why are you telling me this?” asked Percy. _Why are you making me keep Thalia’s brother from her?_ he asked silently.

“Well, you did need to know about the Roman camp. As a god, you should at least be aware of its existence. But I didn’t mean to let that slip about Thalia’s mother. I shouldn’t have put you in this situation. I’m sorry.”

Percy wanted to leak this secret. He wanted to at least let Thalia know her brother was alive. But then he thought about how he would react to the Romans if he were still a demigod. Even his brief conversation with Salacia had felt completely _wrong_ . Not just in that she hadn’t liked him - he was used to gods not liking him - but the fact that they were even talking felt unnatural. Even the gold chain mail she had worn was strange. He’d never seen a god or one of his friends wear chain mail before, let alone in gold. And though he was intrigued by the existence of the Roman camp, he found himself thinking, _It can’t be better than Camp Half-Blood_. With that kind of comparison in mind, he knew how likely it was that the Greeks and Romans would fight if they discovered one another. He couldn’t leak any of this, to Thalia or anyone.

He picked up another cookie and said, “Well, at least this cookie situation is great. Thanks, Amphitrite.”

She smiled apologetically. “You're welcome, Percy.”

Yeah, Percy was sure he’d need a lot of comfort food in order to cope with this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The natural place to start this story would've been the scene in the throne room at the end of the Last Olympian. But I generally hate it when canon scenes are rewritten in fanfic, and I wanted to start this fic in a more intimate place. Some of you might be worried Annabeth hasn't made an appearance yet, but don't worry, she will.


	2. Chapter 2

Percy hadn't really left Olympus since becoming a god. One aspect of himself or another had always stuck around, riding out the last of the victory party, attending godhood orientation, and even getting into a scuffle with Ares. But mostly Percy explored every part of Olympus he'd never seen before.

Granted, a lot of it was rubble, but many gods had used magic to build makeshift throne rooms where their palaces had been. Percy had visited a few of them, and he was already learning the ropes of how the gods traded favors.

Apollo’s was one of the more lavish temporary throne rooms. The seats were lined with velvet cushions, and Apollo’s own throne was completely gold. A guitar serenaded Percy inside.

“Percy Jackson!” said Apollo. “I assume you're here to praise my godhood orientation video! Yours was the first showing since its premiere, you know.”

“Oh. Yeah,” said Percy. He should've known it was Apollo who'd put that together. “Yeah, it was great. I really loved the, uh, fireworks.”

“Right? Clio thought it was too much, but I told her it really set the mood, you know?”

“It definitely did that,” said Percy. “But I also wanted to talk to you about something else. You run Hephaestus TV, right?”

“Of course!” said Apollo. “Can you imagine if the old blacksmith were in charge of the actual content on there? It’d be a total snooze fest. Of course he turned it over to me . . . even if he does still get branding rights and royalties.”

“Right. Well, I wanted to ask you if I could run a regular PSA on unclaimed demigods.”

Apollo frowned. “What about them?”

“Most of the demigods who fought for Kronos were unclaimed, you know. Being crammed into the Hermes cabin, feeling like your godly parent doesn't care about you - it's so demoralizing. Being a demigod is hard enough already. The gods can make it easier on their kids if they at least claim them by the time they're thirteen.”

“Huh. You make a good point, Percy. I like to think I'm good about claiming my children. . . . At least, I don't _think_ any of the unclaimed kids are mine . . .”

“I'm sure it's just an honest mistake most of the time. Some gods have a lot of kids, and they don't realize how much time goes by. They lose track. But if we did regular PSAs featuring one or two unclaimed demigods - we'd include where they're from, who their mortal parent is, stuff like that - it would make a big difference.”

“I don't see us doing a PSA,” said Apollo. Before Percy could protest, he continued, “I see us doing a whole feature. I want to capture the angst, the pathos, directly from the source. I haven't done a documentary in ages, and they're back in vogue. . . . Would you host?”

“Me? But I'm not an actor.”

“Nonsense. You and that Annabeth girl did great in that special broadcast from a water park a few years ago.”

Percy blushed. “That wasn't acting.”

“That's what I mean! You're a natural -”

“Excuse me, Lord Apollo? I'm here for your consultation . . .”

Percy whirled around just as Annabeth came through the door. She stopped short when she saw Percy. He didn't blame her. They had been friendly the last time they talked, but their new situation was still uncomfortable.

“Speak of the devil!” said Apollo, not acknowledging the awkwardness between them. “Annabeth, you have to convince Percy to host on my latest project.”

“Your latest project?”

“My documentary on unclaimed demigods at Camp Half-Blood! Percy’s a perfect host for it, don't you think?”

Percy shifted uncomfortably. “I'm not really the showbiz type . . .” He looked pleadingly at Annabeth, hoping she would talk Apollo out of it.

He should've known better than to think she'd ever make it easy on him. “Well if a documentary is going to have a host, it should be someone who has personal experience with the subject matter,” said Annabeth. “Otherwise there's no credibility. And gods are more willing to listen to another god. So unless you know any other gods who have experience with being unclaimed . . .”

Whenever Annabeth made sense, she always made too much sense. “Fine, I'll do it,” said Percy. “But I'm going to need a lot of coaching, Apollo.”

“Oh, just act natural,” said Annabeth, a little irritably. She never had much patience with Percy acting unsure of himself. “You're a personable guy, Percy. That's why people listen to you.”

“Pers’nable Percy,” began Apollo. “Poseidon’s new attendant / A fabulous host.”

Before he could start another haiku, Annabeth said, “Speaking of fabulous, I wanted to get your feedback on this redesign of your palace . . .” She pulled Daedalus’s laptop from her bag.

“Yes, of course,” said Apollo. “We'll hammer out the details on the documentary later, Percy. Good luck with your other reforms!”

Percy hadn’t mentioned any of said reforms directly to Apollo, but this didn’t bother him. As the god of prophecy, Apollo wasn’t always as clueless as he sometimes acted. Maybe Apollo had foreseen Percy’s plans going well. . . . Or maybe he’d just heard Percy was sponsoring the new cabins at Camp Half-Blood.

Whatever. Percy would rather believe that luck was actually on his side for a change.

* * *

Percy was still getting used to having a cell phone. Half the time he had it on ringer when it needed to be on vibrate, and vice versa. He’d replaced two phones in two weeks because he kept losing them. (If Percy knew more magic, he’d be able to summon the phones from wherever he’d left them. But he was having a hard time getting the hang of it.) It was enough to make Percy consider going back to Iris-messaging only.

The only thing stopping him was Annabeth. Now that they both had phones, they could text each other every day. Although they were both slow texters, and even autocorrect didn’t catch all their spelling mistakes (when it didn’t make it worse), texting was still less awkward than talking in person. Daily texts also kept Percy and Annabeth in much closer contact than they’d had any other school year.

Can’t wait to see you and apallo running around camp with a film crew Percy’s phone chirped at him. Annabeth’s text was signed with a couple cry-laughing emoji.

Well see whose laughing when we interview you 

Nah. Athena claimed me my first night at camp. No cabinet 11 for me 

Of course she did 

Um yeah literally all the goods where watching when we came to camp 

True. It would be out of character for the gods to miss Zeus’s daughter being turned into a tree after being chased by a horde of monsters.

Oh. Yeah I guest they would be 

So tholias going to be in town this weekend 

Cool 

She wants to hit up lee parker meridien with us 

Why 

Because we agreed two? When the hunters stepped in to cover Lincoln tunnel during the battle of Manhattan remember 

Oh yeah 

Since Amphitrite’s reveal, Thalia had loomed in the back of Percy’s mind like the due date for a book report. Not quite real, but vaguely threatening. He tried not to think how their next hangout would go. Soon the secret would be staring him in the face.

Lol its not like you to forgot cheeseburger plans 

Yeah but allot happened sink then 

Yeah. Allot has changed 

Not everything tho 

I though that’s why you became a god. Because you wanted thinks to change 

Yeah I no 

And your already getting a lot done in a short amount of time 

Helps to able to split yourself into 3 people 

Nice. Doesn’t explain why the other gods get nothing done 

Haha 

Srsly tho I’m glad your getting allot done. Idk if I could stand it otherwise 

Ok idk how to take that 

I just mean you no what I said last time you were at camp 

Yeah 

How could Percy forget? When he had tried to explain to Annabeth why he had become a god, she had understood right away. “You still want to be the hero,” she’d said.

“That’s not a bad thing, you know,” Percy had said defensively.

“It’s not,” she’d said. “But you know . . . it was so embarrassing when my mom called you out on your fatal flaw, but she had a point. You can’t always have it all.”

_What the heck?_ Percy had thought. It hadn’t even been two hours since Athena had congratulated Percy on saving both his friends and the world. “I’ve managed just fine so far,” he’d said testily.

“Yeah, but there’s more than one way to lose a friend, Percy.”

“But . . . we’ll still be friends, won’t we?”

“For as long as we can.” Annabeth had looked away. “Look, I don’t blame you for taking up this opportunity. And whatever sacrifices you make . . . well, the people you’ll help will be worth it.”

Percy had taken her hand. “I’m not looking to make any sacrifices anytime soon.”

It wood be harder dealing with all these if it weren’t for something really important  Annabeth texted.

Yeah I get it 

Good. So lee parker meridien Friday at 6? 

Sounds good 

I’ll let tholia no 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annabeth showed up as promised . . . after a year. . . . I'm hoping to update this more regularly.


End file.
